Lydia
by Lily G Parker
Summary: Eric can speak a language that most of the team can't- sign language. His skill set is needed one day when a scared little girl needs to tell her story. There is one other person who can speak her language, but the rest of the team doesn't know. How will a sweet child affect the team? ASL-American Sign Language
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:Hey everyone! I've been trying to learn American Sign Language and this idea just popped into my head. I hope you like it.**

**-Lily :)**

**Disclaimer: No, I don't own the characters, but I own the story and Lyd**

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**ia.**

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw someone walk into Ops. We were in the middle of a case. I was working extremely hard on cracking the code, but it didn't seem to be working.

"Hey, Eric?" I heard Kensi behind me, "We kind of need your help."

"Okay," I said and spun around in my chair. I stopped suddenly when I saw the sight in front of me. Kensi was holding a little girl's hand. She looked to be around seven. Kensi wasn't good with kids, she even said it herself. "What's going on?" I asked in a hesitant voice.

"Well you see this little girl came up to us at the crime scene, but I can't understand her."

"And you think I can?"

"Well…you do speak a language that none of us do." Kensi said, and it clicked. I waved to the little girl and motioned her closer to me.

"_What's your name?_" I asked in sign language.

"_L-Y-D-I-A,_" she spelled out.

"_I'm E-R-I-C,_" I spelled with a smile on my face. Lydia shyly smiled back.

"_Can you tell me what you were trying to tell my friends this morning, L-Y-D-I-A?_"

"_Lydia,_" she quickly corrected using her sign name.

"_OK, I'm Eric,_" I said, giving her my sign name.

"_They are my parents,_" she said with a tear seeping out of her eye.

"What'd she say?" Kensi asked, sounding alarmed. I gently reached out to the girl and pulled her into a hug.

"Her name is Lydia and the two that were murdered last night were her parents." Kensi looked shocked to hear that, but she was also shocked to see the quick bond that had formed between Lydia and me. But I understood her and no one else had. She cried onto my shirt and I let her.

"Does she know what happened?"

"I'm pretty sure that she knows that they're gone forever, but I'm not sure about anything."

Eventually Lydia pulled away from me and wiped her eyes with her balled up hands. "_Hey, Lydia, what's your favorite thing to do?_" Eric said, hoping to give the little girl a way to get away from everything, even if just for a little while.

"_I like numbers and math,_" she said with a weak smile.

"_Really?_" I asked. "_Me too. Do you like Sudokus?_" Lydia nodded her head enthusiastically. I turned away from her and started to look up easy Sudoku's. I felt a light pull on my shirt. I turned to Lydia.

"_What are you doing?_" she asked.

"_Looking for something fun for you to do._"

"_OK._"

"Hey, Eric, is there any way for her to understand anyone other than you?" Kensi asked.

"_Hey, Lydia, can you read lips?_" She nodded her head. It was probably second nature to her. It was almost for me too. "She can read lips, but there is another person who can speak her language."

"Really? Who?"

Nell walked into the OSP and saw the three of us. She looked at me with her 'what is going on here?' look, which was a small smile and one eyebrow raised.

"_Hey, Lydia, this is my friend N-E-L-L. Nell, this is L-Y-D-I-A._" Nell knelt down beside the seven year old. She is amazing with kids and I love her for that. Wait…backtrack there…did I just say love? I couldn't think about that right now; Lydia needed me.

"_Nice to meet you Lydia,_" Nell said.

"_Nice to meet you too, Nell._"

"_Do you know who that woman is over there?_"

"_No, but you are all good guys, right?_"

"_Right. That's K-E-N-S-I._" Lydia turned to Kensi. "_Hi, K-E-N-S-I._"

"She said hi to you," Nell said to Kensi after seeing her confused face.

"No, I got that," she waved to Lydia, "but you can speak sign language?"

"Yeah, Eric taught me," Nell shrugged her shoulders as if it was no big deal to learn another language. She tapped Lydia lightly on the shoulder to get her attention. "_Lydia, do you know what happened last night?_"

'Oh no… I just got her to stop crying,' I thought. I really did not like that before. But she didn't start crying again. Instead, her eyes got all sad and she started to give Nell every detail about what had happened the night before.

She had woken up when she felt vibrations from the floor as if someone was running. She had jumped out of bed because she thought there was a fire. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she had seen a man pull the trigger on the gun and her mother and then her father had fallen to the ground. She was smart. She didn't cry out, instead holding a hand over her mouth to stifle the scream and ran to the closet and hid behind all the coats. She hadn't moved until Kensi had found her this morning.

I felt shock course through me as I listened to Lydia's story. I couldn't imagine going through that experience at any age, let alone as a seven-year old.

"_Do you remember what the man looked like?_" Nell asked. She looked like she was trying to keep the anger from showing on her face. I knew who she was angry with, but Lydia would not. Lydia nodded her head and started to describe the man.

"_He had really dark brown hair, almost black hair. He was taller than mom or dad and I think his eyes were blue._ _And his lips were very thin._" I guess it's true that people who don't have one of their senses, have the rest of their senses sharpened.

"Let's get her some of these Sudokus to work on so she doesn't have to think about it right now." Nell nodded her head and walked over to the printer and took out the Sudokus which ranged from very easy to very hard. Nell stapled them together and handed them to Lydia.

"_Do you have a pencil?_" I handed her my pencil and she was engrossed in her puzzles. She finished the easy ones in a matter of minutes. Nell and I worked on finding the murderer and put a bolo out for the man Lydia described. We were searching through the traffic cameras when we saw a man in a dark blue car that matched the description.

I tapped Lydia on the shoulder and asked, "_Can you look at this picture?_"

"_OK._" She came over to stand next to me. She looked towards the big screen as I pulled up the image. I heard a sharp intake of breath and I looked back towards Lydia. She looked like she had gone into shock. I looked at Nell, silently pleading for help with my eyes. She nodded her head and knelt down beside Lydia. She gently put her hand on Lydia's back. Lydia slowly turned and looked at Nell.

"_Hey, sweetie, are you OK?_" She shook her head slowly.

"_That's the man._"

"Eric, take the picture down. It's him." I immediately did as she asked, not wanting to cause any more pain for the little girl.

"_Do you want to stay here with us or go downstairs with K-E-N-S-I?_" I asked.

"_Both._"

"_Sorry, sweetie, but you've got to choose._" I could see that she was torn between being away having to see the man and being with Nell and me.

"_K-E-N-S-I._" Lydia glanced at the screen as if the picture was going to come back. Nell turned around in her chair to see her scared face.

"_Hey, Lydia, listen to me. That picture is not going to come back,_" Nell said, but Lydia didn't look convinced, "_I promise you._"

"_OK… I want to stay with you two,_" Lydia changed her mind and Nell nodded. I smiled because Nell always knew what to say.

"Hey, Kensi? We have a lead for you and Deeks and Lydia is okay to stay with us. I'm sending the address to your phone," I said.

"Okay," Kensi said, smiling. She waved to Lydia and Lydia waved back. Kensi left Ops and Lydia went back to her Sudokus. Nell and I went back to our computers. We were pretty sure that we had found our man, Simon Carter.

Soon we heard through our coms the sound of the team breaking into the house. Suddenly I saw a man run out of the back of the house. "Guys, back of the house, we've got a runner," I said, typing furiously on the keyboard. I could hear Nell typing next to me twice as fast.

Luckily our team had quick reactions and they were able to cut Carter off.

As they were bringing him to the boatshed to interrogate him, I looked over to Lydia. She was still working on the puzzles, but she had a bunch of them spread out in front of her that were finished. I had a little bit of down time so I went over to her and touched her shoulder.

"_Hey, Lydia. Can I try the next one?_"

"_No,_" she said, looking back down at her puzzle. I touched her shoulder and she looked up again.

"_Why not?_"

"_Because this is the last one_."

"_Really? I printed out at least forty of them._" I was surprised. I turned my head and sign to Nell so that Lydia could understand me too, "_Nell, she is on the last puzzle already. She is a smart one._" Nell nodded her head and turned towards Lydia, "_Nice job!_" Nell walked over and held her hand out to her. Lydia smacked her hand down, giving her a high-five.

"_Is there anything else you like to do?_" I asked.

"_I like to play basketball._"

"_Okay, well we do have a basketball court and Nell is a really good player._" I looked over to Nell and I saw she was smiling.

"_Want to play?_" Nell asked and Lydia nodded enthusiastically.

"_Let's go,_" I said. We all headed downstairs to the gym. Nell found the basketball and passed it to Lydia. She ran down the court and shot the ball, but she missed by just a little bit. I sat on the sidelines because I knew that I couldn't play for the life of me. Nell grabbed the ball and handed it to Lydia. She stood behind her and positioned her for the perfect shot.

Nell gave her a little bit more power and Lydia made a perfect shot. Lydia turned to Nell and gave her a big smile.

"_Great job, sweetheart,_" Nell said and I could tell she was proud of Lydia.

Lydia ran over to me and asked me, "_Did you see that?!_" I nodded my head.

"_I could never make a basket like that._" Her smile grew and she ran back over to Nell. They made a few more baskets, but then Lydia started looking tired.

"_Hey, Lydia, you've had a long day. Do you want to take a nap?_" Lydia vehemently shook her head with a scared look.

"_You don't even have to leave this building,_" Nell said, trying to get to the real reason she didn't want to take a nap. Lydia again shook her head.

"_We won't leave the building either,_" I tried. Lydia smiled hesitantly and I held my hand out to her. She took it. I looked back at Nell and she met my eyes with what on most people I would call adoration. But why would Nell look at me like that? I refused to answer that question right now.

Lydia held out her other hand to Nell and Nell took it. The three of us started to head up to the Bullpen. We brought her over to the couch and she sat down, obviously exhausted.

"_We'll be right up those stairs if you need us, OK?_" I said. Nell came back, but I hadn't even noticed she had left. She took the blanket she had found and tucked Lydia in. When she had finished, Lydia was asleep.

Nell and I went upstairs to call the Boatshed so that we could find out what was happening. When the call was connected, I said, "Hey, guys, any progress?"

"Yup," Deeks said, not giving any extra information. Kensi punched him lightly on the arm and turned to face the screen.

"He just confessed. He had no idea that a child was there. It looked like he felt bad, but he's still just a ruthless killer. He wanted their money," Kensi said.

"Well that would make sense, they were pretty rich," Nell said.

"Wow, Nell, look at this," I said turning to Nell. She pulled her chair over to his and looked at the information I had pulled up on the screen.

"Oh my god," she said in awed voice, "The money is completely legitimate and Lydia will become a millionaire, but only when she turns eighteen." Kensi, Deeks, Callen, and Sam looked at us with daunted expressions. Suddenly, I felt a soft tug on my shirt. I turned around and smiled at Lydia, who was rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"_Hey, you know you only slept for a few minutes?_" I asked. My parental instincts were kicking in. She nodded her head, but quickly signed her answer.

"_I woke up and you weren't there. I had to make sure you hadn't left._" Nell looked at Lydia and I saw Nell's eyes soften.

"_Oh, sweetheart, we said we'd be here,_" Nell said and again I admired her motherly instincts. Lydia smiled, but it still wasn't a full smile. I knew what the problem was. She was still afraid. I would be too.

"_Lydia, you can sleep up here if you want,_" I offered.

"_OK._"

"_Go grab your blanket and a few big pillows._" She nodded her head but still didn't move. "_What's wrong?_"

"_Is the bad guy coming back?_" she asked, her lips quivering as if she was about to cry.

"_No, sweetie, you never have to see him again,_" I said. Tears started to roll down Lydia's face and I beckoned her towards me, but before she came she said, "_I miss my mommy and daddy._" My heart broke at that and I pulled her towards me, hugging her close to me.

"What just happened?" Callen asked. I had forgotten that the whole team was watching. Nell translated everything that had just been said. As Nell was talking, Sam and Callen were becoming beyond angry at the guy who was going to be locked behind bars for the rest of his life. I could tell that Sam was thinking about his own little girl and that Callen was thinking about his own childhood in foster homes. As soon as Nell finished, Callen stormed out of the boatshed.

Lydia pulled away from me when she was all cried out.

"_How about you and I go grab those pillows and blankets?_" I asked, wanting Lydia to sleep so that she could process what had happened to her.

"_OK._" I looked back at Nell as I led Lydia out. She gave me an encouraging nod and a smile that seemed to say 'you're really good with kids.' Her smile was contagious and I smiled back.

We grabbed everything off of the couch to bring upstairs. Just as we were heading upstairs, Callen came storming in. He stopped short when he saw Lydia. He kneeled down in front of her and looked up at me.

"Well are you going to introduce us?"

"_Callen, this is L-Y-D-I-A. Lydia, this is C-A-L-L-E-N,_" I both signed and spoke. Lydia pressed into my side as if she was afraid of Callen.

"_Hi, L-Y-D-I-A,_" Callen signed, looking up to me as I fed him the letters again. Lydia smiled.

"_I thought you couldn't sign,_" Lydia said looking up to me as if asking for conformation.

"_He just learns really fast, sweetheart. Can you say hi?_" I said. I guess that I just have a fatherly side.

"_Hi, C-A-L-L-E-N._" She tugged at my hand and tilted her head upstairs.

"I guess it's time to go make a bed upstairs," I said to Callen.

"And I have to go talk to Hetty." We parted ways. Lydia and I went upstairs so that she could get a nap in before child services came to pick her up.

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Meanwhile, Callen went into Hetty's office.

"Did you finish up the case, Mr. Callen?" Hetty asked.

"Yes, but Hetty…." Hetty looked up from her paperwork when he didn't finish his sentence.

"Yes?"

"I really don't want her to have to go through what I went through."

"She won't if I can help it."

"Do you promise?"

"Yes, and I do believe that you will approve of my plan."

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Lydia was asleep in the corner of Ops and Nell and I were just finishing up our reports. We pushed the send button at the same time. We turned to each other and I gave her our usual underhand-high-five.

"Hey, Nell, do you maybe want to go out to dinner with me tonight?" I asked uncertainly.

"Like on a date?"

"Umm…yeah…I mean if you want it to be," I said. I have this tendency to ramble when I'm nervous and now would be one of those times.

"Okay."

"Really?"

"Yeah, don't try to change my mind," Nell said and bumped my shoulder with hers. We sat for a few minutes. I was just reveling in the fact that she had said yes. Soon I was pulled from my thoughts by a small hand tapping my arm.

"_Hey, sweetie, what's up?_"

"_I need to use the bathroom._"

"_Come on, I'll take you,_" Nell said coming to my rescue.

When they came back, I had some more Sudokus for her to work on. After a little while of silence, the doors of Ops swished opened to reveal Hetty and Callen.

"Mr. Callen will watch Lydia for a few minutes. Mr. Beale and Miss Jones, would you come with me?" We followed Hetty out of Ops and down to her desk.

"We don't think that it would be best for Miss Lydia to go into the foster care system."

"Well I agree," I said.

"But what is our other choice?" Nell finished for me.

"Well…" Hetty stopped and looked at both of our confused faces. Nell suddenly seemed to understand. Her eyes went wide.

"You don't think we really could, do you Hetty?" Nell asked.

"Do what?"

"I am offering to let you, Mr. Beale and Miss Jones to foster Lydia."

"What?!"

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**A/N: I hope you enjoyed it . I love reviews and if I get enough I think that I will probably continue this story. So tell me what you thought. **

**-Lily :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:**** Hey everyone! Thank you for reading my last story and for following, reviewing, and alerting. Here's the second installment.**

**-Lily :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything that you recognize.**

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"What?!" I asked looking over to Nell. She was still shocked. "You want us to take care of a seven-year old?"

"Yes, Mr. Beale. She has become quite attached to you and I believe that together, you would make great parents," Hetty reaffirmed what she had said before.

"But, Hetty, I won't be a good mother. I'm—" Nell started to say, but was cut off with Hetty holding her hand up.

"Nell, you are great with kids," I said. Nell looked at me with a grateful smile, but I continued, not having voiced my doubts yet, "I- I am not up for being a parent. I am practically still a kid myself."

"Yes, Mr. Beale, that is one of the reasons that kids love you so much. However, you are a grown man who deals with trying situations every day. I am sure that you will be able to take care of a little girl, especially with the help of Miss Jones." I looked at her like she was crazy. I would never be a good father.

"I think you will be a good father to her. I've seen you with her all day. You are great with her," Nell turned to me with a smile and I couldn't help but smile back. Hetty decided to try one more tactic.

"Mr. Beale and Miss Jones, if she goes into foster-care, she may not be able to have foster parents who speak sign language." We must have still looked at her like she was insane because she added, "Well you don't exactly have a choice because I have already asked Lydia's permission."

"What did she say?" I asked like an idiot. Of course she said yes, otherwise we wouldn't be sitting here now. "Wait, how did you ask her?"

"I do know a little sign language and Miss Lydia said yes. I have also contacted the Department of Children and Families and pulled all the right strings for this. However, if you both feel as if this would be a bad idea, I am willing to reverse the strings for you."

"Oh, Hetty, no, we'll take her," I said quickly. I did not want this precious child, who I had only met a few short hours ago, to be taken out of my life. Lydia had quickly become one of the most important people in my life. Lydia now tied for first place with Nell as the most important person in my life. After I had hastily spoken, I realized that Lydia was going to be a big change in Nell's life as well.

I looked over to Nell. She smiled and nodded her head, approving my decision. She reached out and took my hand. She squeezed my hand. I could practically feel the reassurance coursing through me.

Hetty beckoned to someone behind us. I turned around and saw Lydia coming towards me.

"_Hey, sweetie, how was your nap?_" I asked.

"_Good, but you weren't there when I woke up. Only C-A-L-L-E-N._"

"_I'm sorry, sweetheart. We had to talk to H-E-T-T-Y,_" Nell stepped in. She was going to be a perfect foster-mother for Lydia. She always knew the perfect thing to say. 'Oh no,' I thought, 'I guess it looks like we're not going to be able to go on that date.'

"_Are you still tired sweetheart?_" I asked and she nodded her head. She reached her arms up to me. Immediately I knew that she wanted to be picked up. Maybe I could do this. I pulled her up onto my lap. Her head rested against my shoulder and she closed her eyes.

I looked over to Nell who smirked and said, "I told you so."

"Okay, Hetty, what's the next thing we need to do?" I asked.

"Nothing needs to be done. As I said before, I pulled a few strings. Now, get her upstairs so that she can lie down and you two can talk." Nell and I nodded our heads. I lifted Lydia so that she could rest on my hip and I stood up.

"Thank you Hetty," I said. I don't think I could have asked for a better thing in my life. We headed upstairs. After the doors of Ops swished open, I walked over to Lydia's makeshift bed and gently set her down. Her eyes briefly flickered open when I let go of her, but I signed, "_We are right here,_" and she fell back asleep.

"What's the plan?" Nell asked.

"You think I have one?"

"Well, I was hoping so."

"Well the first part of the plan has to be about tonight. What is going to happen tonight?"

"Okay, um…you don't have a spare bedroom, but I do…so…" Nell said sounding hesitant.

"Lydia should stay at your apartment," I immediately agreed. I didn't feel comfortable having Lydia stay at my apartment because that would mean I wouldn't have Nell's help.

"Okay, well, we have nothing for a kid. The most important being clothing," Nell said. She was always the voice of reason.

"How about school?"

"I think that she will probably need to take a day or two to grieve and get settled with us. And in the meantime we can look for a good school near OSP and my apartment."

"Okay. I'll go ask Hetty if we can get some of her clothing from her house." Nell nodded her head and I went to Hetty's office.

"Mr. Beale, what seems to be the problem?"

"We need to get clothing for Lydia."

"I have already taken care of that."

"How?"

"Mr. Deeks and Miss Blye have just left. I have told them to bring as much clothing as they could back with them."

"Thank you Hetty." She nodded and smirked as I left her office. I don't think I'll ever understand that woman. I went back upstairs to see Nell concentrating.

"What's up, Nell?"

"Just trying to figure out what else a seven-year old needs. What did Hetty say?"

"She already sent Kensi and Deeks."

"Of course she did."

"Hey Nell? Don't worry about every little thing she needs. As long as she has the essentials, she will be fine."

"But, I need to know think that she will be fine."

"You have food in your cabinets. You have a bed for her. We will have clothing for her. She will be fine. If you want something fun for her to do, you could find Sudokus, but as we get to know her better, we will know what else she needs. Stop stressing so much."

"Okay."

"Because the most important thing for her right now is to be supported and loved."

"You know that you sound like Nate right now?" I let out a laugh and Nell continued, "I don't think I've ever seen you that serious."

"Well I was. We'll all be fine." She grabbed my hand for the second time that day.

"How about we both take a rain-check on that date?" she suggested, but I had a better idea.

"How about not?" I asked and Nell gave me the 'you're crazy' look, so I finished my thought, "How about tonight the three of us watch a movie that Lydia likes and then I help you tuck her in?"

"That sounds nice…and it makes me slightly less nervous."

"Nell, geez, you'll be fine. You're great with kids," I said, but I understood exactly. I was nervous too. Who isn't before they have to take care of a little kid? Nell smiled at me, but we could see through each other and we both knew that the other was scared. "So are we on for tonight?"

"Of course," Nell said just as Kensi and Deeks walked in. They each had two bags and Deeks was carrying a picture frame.

"We brought some goodies for sleeping beauty over there," Deeks said, nodding his head towards Lydia.

"What did you bring," Nell asked.

"Some clothing…a lot of clothing and a teddy bear that looked special and, Deeks show them the picture," Kensi said. The picture looked like it was taken last summer. Lydia was sitting on her father's lap and she was looking up at her father. Her mother had her arms around both of them. They were all laughing like maybe her father had just told a joke. Lydia was in a pretty light blue sundress with little white flowers.

"We thought it would be good for her to have a picture of them," Deeks said. Nell nodded and took the picture. Kensi and Deeks set the rest of the bags down on the floor.

"When is DCF coming?" Deeks asked. I looked at Nell and saw she was surprised too. Her eyes were wide and she lifted one eyebrow as if asking, 'they don't know?' I shrugged my shoulders.

"_Are we allowed to tell them?_" Nell asked.

"_They are going to find out at some point,_" I reasoned.

"_Or maybe you just know that you can't keep a secret,_" Nell said, rolling her eyes and smirking.

"_I can too keep a secret!_" I said, but I didn't really mean it. I knew I couldn't keep a secret.

"Can one of you two tell me what you're talking about?" Deeks asked. He did not like to be kept out of any conversation.

"_Let's tell him,_" I said. Nell nodded.

"DCF isn't coming," Nell started.

"What? That doesn't make any sense. Someone has to take care of her," Kensi said. She had this look on her face that she only gets when she is trying to figure a really hard problem out.

"Umm… we are umm…" I tried to start, but thankfully Nell jumped in, "We are fostering Lydia."

"You two," Deeks said with a scrunched up forehead, pointing between Nell and Eric, "together are going to foster her?"

"Yup," Nell said simply, looking over to Lydia with a gentle smile.

"Hetty set it up without asking us first," I said, "but I think I would have said yes anyways."

"Okay, well, you guys know that I'm not great with kids, but if there is anything I can…" Kensi gave her support and I was beyond glad that they just accepted the new situation.

"Same here," said Deeks, pursing his lips to make his serious expression. I heard a noise behind me and I turned in my swivel chair. Lydia smiled shyly and came closer to Nell. She reached her arms up to Nell who bent down and picked her up.

"_Hey sweetheart, what do you say we go to Nell's house and eat some dinner with a movie?_" I asked Lydia. She nodded, putting her head on Nell's shoulder. Lydia still looked sleepy, but it had been a long day for her.

"_Are mommy and daddy ever coming back?_" I looked at Nell who had a shocked expression with both of her eyes big. I probably looked the same. I didn't know what to say.

"What did she say?" Kensi said. She must have seen our faces.

"Umm...," Nell said, "She asked if her parents were coming back."

"It might be best if you told her the truth," Deeks said. Kensi nodded in agreement. She knew what it was like to lose a parent. I looked over to Nell. She nodded her head slightly as if saying, 'You say it…my hands are full.'

"_Lydia, listen to me,_" I started. I did not want to have to repeat the news, and Lydia turned and focused all her attention on me. "_Your parents have passed away, but they still love you very much and always will. Nell and I will be taking care of you for a little while. Is that OK with you?_" Silent tears ran down her face and she nodded her head.

"_I know they're dead. I just needed to hear it from you._" I was again shocked, but she was such a smart kid. I guess I shouldn't have expected any less. "_I miss them so much. It hurts so much,_" Lydia said and for what felt like the millionth time today, my heart went out to her.

"_I know, sweetheart, I know._" I reached out to Lydia to take her so that Nell could talk to her. When she was sitting in my lap, she buried her face in my shirt and cried. I let her and rubbed her back, trying to comfort her, but who could really comfort a child who has just had her whole world flipped upside-down?

Soon her tears stopped and she looked up at me and then over to Nell. "_Can we go soon?_" she asked.

"_Sure,_" Nell said.

"_How long do I get to stay with you?_" Nell looked at me, but I didn't know what to say either.

"_I don't know, but probably for a long while,_" Nell finally answered after an awkward pause. Lydia nodded and hopped down from my lap. She ran over to the bags that Kensi and Deeks were still holding. She tugged at one of the bags and both Kensi and Deeks put them down, but Deeks didn't put the teddy bear down. Lydia turned to Nell and me.

"_Can you ask him for my teddy bear?_" Lydia asked politely. I nodded my head.

"Hey Deeks, can you give Lydia her teddy bear? Or have you become attached to it?" I asked jokingly.

"Oh," Deeks said and knelt down next to Lydia facing her so that she could read his lips, "Is this what you wanted, sweetie?" Lydia nodded and took the teddy bear from Deeks' outstretched hand.

She hugged it close to her and asked, "_Is that D-E-E-K-S?_" I nodded my head.

"_Why don't you find a sweater or coat and then we'll head over to my house?_" Nell said and then looking at Kensi and Deeks said, "Do you know where you put something warm in those bags?" I smiled at Nell. She seemed to have a special instinct. I wouldn't have thought of making sure she was warm.

Deeks and Lydia sorted through the bags and finally found a blue sweater. Lydia put it on and walked over to me and Nell. We had shut everything down on the computers and we were ready to head out. I stood up and immediately she took my hand. Nell stood up with the picture in her hand. Lydia handed me her teddy bear and took Nell's hand as well.

"Can you two bring the bags?" Nell asked Kensi and Deeks. They reached down, picked the bags up and followed us out. As we walked out down the main hallway, Hetty stopped us. She knelt down in front of Lydia.

"Can you be a good girl for Nell and Eric?" She asked signing just a few of the words. Lydia nodded her head with a solemn expression. Hetty rose to her feet and squeezed Lydia's shoulder, "Good."

We walked out to Nell's car. Nell leaned into the car after Lydia had buckled her seatbelt to make sure she was secure. Her motherly instincts made me smile again. When she had moved out of the way, I leaned in to talk to her, "_I am going to take my car, but I promise to meet you there, OK?_" She nodded and I kissed her head. I closed the door and turned to see Kensi and Deeks just staring at me, but Nell was smirking.

"I told you so," she said and I blushed a little. I looked over the day mentally. I guess I did kind of knew what to do with a kid.

"You two are going to be the best foster parents that she could have," Kensi said. Deeks just nodded his head in agreement.

"Thanks," Nell said because I didn't say anything and she knew I wasn't going to.

"We should go," I said, "I'll follow you, okay?"

"Okay." I watched as Nell got into her car, then I got into my car and followed her to her house.

* * *

**A/N:****Thank you for reading. If you want me to keep writing this story, please tell me. I hope you liked it. Please review!**

**-Lily :)**


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